Legarda: Skills Devt is Key to Poverty Alleviation

Deputy Speaker and Lone District of Antique Representative Loren Legarda continues to uplift the lives of many Antiqueños by ensuring that programs of the national government continue to reach the province and benefit her kasimanwa.

Among these programs are the Barangay Kabuhayan Skills Training Program (BKSTP), Training for Work Scholarship Program (TWSP), and Special Training for Employment Program (STEP), all under the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) benefitting over 10,000 Antiqueño trainees since 2016.

To further provide the province with the capacity to generate more jobs and develop skilled workers, Legarda supported the allocation of funds for the construction of TESDA Training centers in each of the 18 municipalities. Moreover, the construction of the provincial training center located in Hamtic is also ongoing and is estimated to be completed by October 2020.

“Skills development is crucial in helping our kasimanwa emerge from poverty. Through our coordination with TESDA, we provide our people not only with livelihood opportunities, but we see to it that employment creation initiatives are matched with local training programs and livelihood activities of a certain community. We have to invest in their existing skills and help them enhance and improve in their areas of expertise,” Legarda said.#